PROGRAMS

Workshops

The ICEE and University Centers for Economic Education offer both summer intensive workshops for graduate credit as well as curriculum specific workshops throughout the year.

Economics and Entrepreneurship: Operating a Classroom Business in the Elementary and Middle School

(Classroom Business Enterprise)

This newly revised curriculum will tell you how to organize and run a simple real-money classroom business. The curriculum also introduces you to the economic and business concepts you can teach students along the way. The curriculum comes with three tests, an attitude survey to give students, and a Literature Connection, which describes children's literature books to use to reinforce economic concepts. If you're at all interested in helping your students understand the world of economics and business, this curriculum is for you. Available from the Council for Economic Education (www.councilforeconed.org), but may be offered free to Indiana teachers in Indiana Council and Center workshops.

Classroom Mini-Economy

The Classroom Mini-Economy, developed by the Indiana Department of Education and adopted by the National Council on Economic Education, is a hands-on form of instruction that prepares students to function in today’s rapidly changing and independent society. Students experience entrepreneurship and real life by operating their own classroom economy.

If you are already using the Classroom Mini-Economy, be sure to take a look at these other great resources:

Teaching Economics Using Children's Literature

Using children's literature to teach economics is an excellent strategy to economize on scarce instructional time. ICEE has worked with the Indiana Department of Education to revise the popular Teaching Economics Using Children's Literature curriculum, which is distributed by the Council for Economic Education. The curriculum is available free to Indiana teachers at in-service programs. For training opportunities, contact your local Center for Economic Education.

This curriculum has interdisciplinary lessons on 24 popular books, such as The Doorbell Rang, Uncle Jed's Barbershop, and Holes. Five additional lessons from the first edition are also available on line. See below.

Energy, Economics, and the Environment

ICEE, through the support of Indiana Michigan Power, offers workshops each summer on the important Energy, Economics, and the Environment (EEE) curriculum, originally developed by the Indiana Department of Education. This newly revised curriculum offers basic information on key topics such as water and forest resources, renewable and non renewable energy sources, solid waste, and global warming. The curriculum at each level revolves around age-appropriate case studies, which help students apply sound economic reasoning to important energy and environmental issues.

Indiana Stock Market Game

Get your students excited about learning! Using actual data from the stock markets, teams of students are given a hypothetical $100,000 to create and manage a portfolio of stocks and mutual funds. Before they know it, students are learning about financial markets such as the New York Stock Exchange, understanding the basics of personal investing and enhancing skills learned in math, reading, and technology.

KidsEcon Posters

Posters illustrating economic and financial literacy concepts give teachers innovative teaching tools to teach not only economics, but also other subjects in the curriculum. You will find a literature connection on the web site that list some great children's books that illustrate economic concepts from the posters. The posters can also be supplemented by great activities such as KidsEcon Bingo and KidsEcon Activity Cards. And don't forget to sing some of the economics songs with your students!

Annual Awards Program

Awards Applications/Nomination Forms:

Olin Davis for Exemplary Teaching of Economics: This distinguished award is presented each year to K-12 teachers who have excelled in teaching and promoting the teaching of economics.

Paul Samuelson Enterprise Award for Community Leaders: This distinguished award honors community leaders who have demonstrated outstanding commitment to economic education in their community.

Lawrence Senesh Award for School Administrators: The ICEE gives this award each year to an outstanding school administrator who has excelled in promoting economic education in his or her school or school corporation.

Student Competitions

Economics Challenge: High School economics students compete in a state competition testing their economic knowledge. 2011 winners

Calendar Poster Contest: Students in grades 2-8 create posters illustrating economic concepts. Winners are featured in ICEE Calendar. 2011 winners

Other Awards/Grants

EconomicsAmerica Grants

IDOE Economic Education Grants (The Indiana Department of Education has, for now, discontinued funding for the Economic Education Grant Program.)

International Grant Opportunities